About Me

More than shooting some hoops, shoot some stories with a new friend or a trusted buddy.

Playgrounds are meant to be enjoyed by every kid in town. These playgrounds are one of the first social spaces where they learn the little yet profound realities of life. The time spent in crossing monkey bars or simply giggling over a round of rides on a swing or the very first unaided slide thrill rings a certain nostalgia, and a sense of immense achievement in each of us.

Then again, as times change, the United States is faced with yet another challenge in the form of the increasing cases of children with special needs. Studies revealed that 1 out 6 kids are now faced with a winning war against disability which is usually manifested through a form of hampered educational progress. As playtime is an integral part of a child’s learning curve, equipment for play is now being utilized as empowerment spaces for these handicapped kids. Today, every playtime is a precious time for parents, teachers, and even abled kids to reach out and take part in making children with special needs bring out their independence, self-worth, and distinctive productivity to work, and play. Accessible playgrounds for handicapped kids are no longer viewed as luxuries, but as necessities that pave the way to their better and well-equipped future.

Tic-tac-toe has been a part of almost everyone’s childhood, but for the wrong reasons. Most adults and children think it’s a simple game to pass the time; that it’s a game similar to what playing on the playground means today—it’s done when the power’s out and there’s nothing else to do.

Now that there are a lot of mobile game apps available, the importance of playground time and the seemingly simple game of tic-tac-toe has been overlooked. Children nowadays learn to be technologically savvy at an early age, using tablets or smartphones to learn their ABCs or hear audios of bedtime rhymes. This presents a problem especially if it sacrifices children’s time for fun outdoors like playing at a commercial playground with other kids or playing games and puzzles with either their parents or teachers.

You might not even realize that simple activities like these can affect your children’s development, especially in their formative years.

It only take 37 seconds to make a bully and a victim; and in every seven minutes that passes, a child somewhere in America is being bullied. In fact, 1 out of every 4 kids falls prey to the claws of a bully, or worse, a group of bullies. In the same saddening note, 1 out of every 4 teachers think that bullying is normal, or not at all wrong. As if this is not enough to shock you, some 160,000 students skip school every day for the simple yet inarguable reason that they fear the idea of being a butt of the bully's jokes. Bullying Statistics revealed that while 71% of students strongly believe that bullying is a pressing concern in their schools, teachers will intervene with this concern only 4% of the time.

Now, you wonder, how on earth will mere playgrounds come to save the bullied child's tragic day?

While playgrounds are usually perceived as breeding grounds for the bullies and the victims, recent studies commissioned by the Royal Bank of Scotland discovered that if playgrounds are redesigned to encourage children to relearn the basics of ethics, bullying incidences can decrease by up to 64%. Indeed, playgrounds of all forms - be it plastic, those that are found in the backyard alongside a tree house, or those that fall under the classic wooden wonders department - help develop children in a more real, practical and beneficial way.

He loves you wearing cap from his favorite baseball player, even if it annoys you. He would buy you toy cars, robots and lots and lots of books to read.

He teaches you to read even before pre-school does so. He buys shirts too large for you but still make you look innocently adorable. He loves cutting your hair too short because (according to him) it is a school rule. He would walk you to and from the school every single day without fail; always standing with a pair of spectacle shades clipped on. He patiently accompany you for hours of tiring play down the commercial playground nearby. He is your playmate bounded by blood. He is your hero more valuable than gold. He is the man with the biggest heart and to whom you share the best adventures with – your father.

The world radically began when fathers were not seen as caretakers of the children, a role often vested in the mother. His influence was seen as minor, sometimes negligible and his importance was defined by how well he provided the family.